DOCSLIB.ORG

M-Government Services Initiatives in Oman Syed Jafar Naqvi and Hafedh Al-Shihi Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Sultanate of Oman

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
M-Government Services Initiatives in Oman Syed Jafar Naqvi and Hafedh Al-Shihi Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Sultanate of Oman Issues in Informing Science and Information Technology Volume 6, 2009 M-Government Services Initiatives in Oman Syed Jafar Naqvi and Hafedh Al-Shihi Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Sultanate of Oman [email protected] ; [email protected] Abstract Information technology and communications have now become the main elements that move forward and help Oman in its national development process. Internet penetration in most develop- ing countries like Oman is still low as oppose to mobiles dissemination, despite the government plans and strategies to enhance internet diffusion. Internet subscribers comprised about 2.5% of the general population of Oman. In contrast, the number of mobile holders increased substan- tially since the launch of these services in 1996. Prepaid mobile services and SMS were intro- duced in 2001 and both are currently popular with subscribers. Such fine appeal influenced many government organizations to go mobile with their services. This paper reviewed the ICT sector and the current m-government initiatives in Oman setting up the mobile services and aimed to understand the key factors to adoption and diffusion of these services. Keywords : Oman, e-government, m-government, technology adoption, success factors Introduction Mobile devices are now becoming part of our daily and business life. At the end of year 2001, approximately 14% of the world population – 850 Million people – were mobile phone users. This growth has been spectacular especially in Europe after the telecom industry de-regulation and adoption of Global System for Mobile (GSM) communications (Sadeh, 2002). Now, mobile phones are no longer used only for voice communication but are a convenient way of connecting to the Internet and are used for transferring data, exchanging e-mails, and doing small scale busi- ness transactions (Sadeh, 2002). Mobile phone penetration is well above the home PCs usage in Europe and it seems that the trend will continue (Varshney, 2000). Mobile or wireless devices are widely used not only by developed countries but also commonly used by many other developing nations of the world and Oman is not an exception. Mobiles technologies with the introduction of internet enabled mobile phones, PDA’s, WiFi and wireless networks have offered their users to enjoy all the benefits of telephones, information ac- cessing, text messaging such as SMS (Clark, 2001; Donegan, 2000; May, 2001). A recent esti- mate indicated that over half of the Omani populations have mobile devices, while the mobile infrastructure in Oman is currently cov- ering 95% of the country (Ministry of Material published as part of this publication, either on-line or in print, is copyrighted by the Informing Science Institute. National Economy, 2007). The volume Permission to make digital or paper copy of part or all of these of penetration of mobile devices in the works for personal or classroom use is granted without fee country is paving the path for more of- provided that the copies are not made or distributed for profit fering of m-government services acces- or commercial advantage AND that copies 1) bear this notice sible from anywhere and at any time. in full and 2) give the full citation on the first page. It is per- missible to abstract these works so long as credit is given. To This lead to mobile government activi- copy in all other cases or to republish or to post on a server or ties reaching a larger base in a more to redistribute to lists requires specific permission and payment convenient manner. of a fee. Contact [email protected] to request redistribution permission. M-Government Services Initiatives in Oman Thus, several organizations in Oman have started to utilize this to open mobile channels with their clients. Muscat Municipality developed an m-parking system which enables motorists to pay parking fees via SMS. In addition, higher secondary school students can now retrieve their end of semester grades (via SMS) by messaging their student seat numbers to a phone number desig- nated by ministry of education. Many other organizations are now sending bulk SMS messages to citizens to inform them about different activities. Despite its early stage, m-government seems to have a substantial influence on the current m-government services initiatives in Oman, which are further needed to be explored. Purpose of the study: In this paper, an attempt is made to review the current m-government ser- vices initiatives in Oman and to understand the key factors to its adoption and diffusion. Background to the Study The Sultanate of Oman is a developing country, which is located on the south east of the Arabian Peninsula. Oman occupies an area of 309,500 square kilometers (Ministry of Information – Oman, 2008b). It shares borders with United Arab Emirates to the north-west, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the west, the Republic of Yemen to the south and the Arabian Sea lies eastwards. Oman is divided into five regions i.e. Ad-Dakhliyah, Adh-Dhahirah, Al-Batinah, Al-Wusta and Ash-Sharqiyah and four governorates i.e. Al Buraymi, Dhofar, Musandam and Muscat. The total adult literacy in Oman is 81% which is very high in the region and per capita income reaching to US$ 9070. Oman’s real renaissance began with the accession of His Majesty; Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said to the throne on 23 July 1970 (Ministry of Information – Oman, 2008a). Oman’s government system is monarchy (Ministry of Information – Oman, 2008a). According to the latest estimates (Ministry of National Economy – Oman, 2007), in 2006 Oman had a population of 2.677 million people. However, nearly 693,000 residents, 25.9 per cent of the population, were expatriates. Oman’s currency is the Rial (OMR) which is about USA $2.60 per unit. The country’s main revenue comes from oil and natural gas. According to the Ministry of National Economy – Oman (April 2008), Oman’s 2006 GDP reached OMR 13,737 million (pro- visional), compared to OMR 104 million in 1970. The country’s economic status was substan- tially enhanced by rising oil prices. The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA, 2007) estimated Oman’s GDP in 2005 to be US$30,834 millions. ICT Sector The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector in Oman is at an early stage of development, but it is quickly gaining momentum. The government is currently undertaking a comprehensive planning and development program for the sector. The National Committee for Information Technology was established in 1998 to address issues in Oman’s information and communications sector. The Committee is chaired by the Minister of National Economy (ESCWA, 2007). In April 2000, the Committee formed the ‘Information Technology Task Force’ (ITTF) (AlEsma- eli, 2002) to develop an IT vision for Oman. The Task Force’s deliberations produced the follow- ing statement: “The leveraging of Information Technology & communications in providing col- laborative services to public & private sectors and citizens through electronic means as being the driving force to move forward the Sultanate to the Knowledge Based Economy and achieve sus- tainable development ” (National Committee for Information Technology – Oman, 2003). Later on an Information Technology Authority (ITA) was established by the Royal Decree No. 52/2006 to oversee Oman’s ICT sector and Digital Oman strategy of which e-government is a subset (ESCWA, 2007). Oman had OmanTel as the only service provider for both mobile and fixed tele- 818 Naqvi & Al-Shihi communication services until 2004, when Nawras became a second provider, though it offered mobile services only. The adoption rate among the key ICT services varies in Oman. According to Ministry of National Economy Oman (2008), the number of internet subscribers and mobile subscribers are increasing, while the number of fixed phone subscribers is reducing. There is a 6% reduction of fixed phone subscribers in 2007 in comparison to year 2006 as shown in Figure 1. During the same period, there is a sharp rise 40.4% of mobile phone prepaid subscribers and 19.3% rise in postpaid ser- vices as shown in Figure 2. Figure 1: Subscribers of Internet and Fixed Phones Figure 2: Subscribers of Mobile Post and Prepaid In addition, multimedia message services (MMS), general packet radio service (GPRS) and wire- less application protocol (WAP) were introduced at the end of 2004 (ESCWA, 2005) while the third generation (3G) mobile services have been launched by Nawras at the end of 2007 (Nawras, 2008). OmanTel is developing and upgrading its services to provide better and efficient services to its telephone and internet subscribers. As Oman is participation in a Falcon submarine cable venture, a high-capacity loop cable system that extends from the Middle East and Egypt through India to China, with Muscat as one of the hub cities. Flag Telecom, a leading global network services provider, funded the project together with India’s Reliance Infocomm (AME Info, 2004; & Alwa- tan, 2004). This extra capacity was instrumental in increasing the number of Omani internet sub- scribers. M-government Services As mentioned earlier, over half of the Omani population has mobile devices. Thus, several or- ganizations in Oman have started to utilize this to open mobile channels with their clients. This section outlines the major m-government services in Oman categorized in two groups; push and 819 M-Government Services Initiatives in Oman pull services. Push services are passive in nature where clients or end-users usually receive notifi- cations about certain activities or events. On the contrary, Pull services ask users to play more active role in either initiating the service or responding to queries via mobile devices. Push services Muscat Securities Market has developed a paid service that enables investors to receive regular updates on market and stock alerts via SMS (Oman Mobile, 2007b).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Oman: Politics, Security, and U.S
    Oman: Politics, Security, and U.S. Policy Updated May 19, 2021 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov RS21534 SUMMARY RS21534 Oman: Politics, Security, and U.S. Policy May 19, 2021 The Sultanate of Oman has been a strategic partner of the United States since 1980, when it became the first Persian Gulf state to sign a formal accord permitting the U.S. military to use its Kenneth Katzman facilities. Oman has hosted U.S. forces during every U.S. military operation in the region since Specialist in Middle then, and it is a partner in U.S. efforts to counter terrorist groups and other regional threats. In Eastern Affairs January 2020, Oman’s longtime leader, Sultan Qaboos bin Sa’id Al Said, passed away and was succeeded by Haythim bin Tariq Al Said, a cousin selected by Oman’s royal family immediately upon Qaboos’s death. Sultan Haythim espouses policies similar to those of Qaboos and has not altered U.S.-Oman ties or Oman’s regional policies. During Qaboos’s reign (1970-2020), Oman generally avoided joining other countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates , Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman) in regional military interventions, instead seeking to mediate their resolution. Oman joined but did not contribute forces to the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State organization, nor did it arm groups fighting Syrian President Bashar Al Asad’s regime. It opposed the June 2017 Saudi/UAE- led isolation of Qatar and had urged resolution of that rift before its resolution in January 2021.
    [Show full text]
  • Oman 2019 Human Rights Report
    OMAN 2019 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Sultanate of Oman is a hereditary monarchy ruled by Sultan Qaboos al-Said since 1970. The sultan has sole authority to enact laws through royal decree, although ministries and the bicameral Majlis Oman (parliament) can draft laws on nonsecurity-related matters, and citizens may provide input through their elected representatives. The Majlis Oman is composed of the Majlis al-Dawla (upper house or State Council), whose 85 members are appointed by the sultan, and the elected 86-member Majlis al-Shura (lower house or Consultative Assembly). In October nearly 350,000 citizens participated in the Majlis al-Shura elections for the Consultative Assembly; there were no notable claims of improper government interference. The Royal Office controls internal and external security and coordinates all intelligence and security policies. Under the Royal Office, the Internal Security Service investigates all matters related to domestic security. The Royal Oman Police (ROP), including the ROP Coast Guard, is also subordinate to the Royal Office and performs regular police duties. The Royal Office and Royal Diwan--the sultan’s personal offices--maintained effective control over the security forces. Significant human rights issues included: allegations of torture of prisoners and detainees in government custody; restrictions on free expression, the press, and the internet, including censorship, site blocking, and criminal libel; substantial interference with the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; required exit permits for foreign workers; restrictions on political participation; and criminalization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) conduct. Authorities generally held security personnel and other government officials accountable for their actions.
    [Show full text]
  • Oman 2018 International Religious Freedom Report
    OMAN 2018 INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM REPORT Executive Summary The Basic Law declares Islam to be the state religion but prohibits discrimination based on religion and protects the right of individuals to practice other religions as long as doing so does not “disrupt public order or contradict morals.” According to the law, offending Islam or any Abrahamic religion is a criminal offense. There is no provision of the law specifically addressing apostasy, conversion, or renunciation of religious belief. In January the government issued a new penal code which significantly increased penalties for blasphemy and criminalized groups that promote a religion other than Islam. Proselytizing in public is illegal. In April Hassan Al-Basham, who had been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in 2016 for blasphemy and disturbing religious values in his comments on social media, died in prison. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) based outside the country had previously reported he had won an appeal on medical grounds to commute his sentence, but reportedly a court later overturned it. The Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs (MERA) monitored sermons and distributed approved texts for all imams. Religious groups continued to report problems with opaque processes and unclear guidelines for registration. Nonregistered groups, such as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Church of Jesus Christ) and others, remained without permanent, independent places of worship. Non- Muslim groups said they were able to worship freely in private homes and government-approved houses of worship, although space limitations continued to cause overcrowding at some locations. The MERA continued to require religious groups to request approval before publishing or importing religious texts or disseminating religious publications outside their membership.
    [Show full text]
  • Current Situation with Respect to Regional and Subregional Cooperation
    UNODC/SUBCOM/55/3 20 March 2020 Original: English* Subcommission on Illicit Drug Traffic and Related Matters in the Near and Middle East Fifty-fifth session* Item 3 of the provisional agenda** Current situation with respect to regional and subregional cooperation Current situation with respect to regional and subregional cooperation Report of the Secretariat I. Introduction 1. The present report provides an analysis of the situation concerning drugs, crime and terrorism in the Near and Middle East and describes the activities conducted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in that region since the fifty-fourth session of the Subcommission on Illicit Drug Traffic and Related Matters in the Near and Middle East, held in September 2019. 2. According to the World Drug Report 2019, the world’s single largest heroin trafficking pathway continues to be the Balkan route, which sees drugs smuggled from, inter alia, Afghanistan through Iran (Islamic Republic of), Turkey and the Balkan countries and on to various destinations in Western and Central Europe. Seizures made by countries along the Balkan route accounted for 47 per cent of the global quantities of heroin and morphine seized outside Afghanistan in 2017. Furthermore, at the global level, the amount of heroin seized remained relatively stable, at between 72 and 78 tons, in the period 2008–2013, but has increased since then, reaching almost 102 tons in 2017. Since 2006, the six countries seizing the largest amounts (Afghanistan, China, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Pakistan, Turkey and the United States of America) accounted for between 63 and 84 per cent of the amounts seized globally.
    [Show full text]
  • Appendix Main Staff of Unafei
    APPENDIX MAIN STAFF OF UNAFEI Director Mr. Mikinao Kitada Deputy Director Mr. Keiichi Aizawa Faculty Chief of Training Division, Professor Mr. Toru Miura Chief of Research Division, Professor Mr. Kenji Teramura Chief of Information & Library Service Division, Professor Mr. Kei Someda Professor Mr. Yuichiro Tachi Professor Mr. Yasuhiro Tanabe Professor Ms. Sue Takasu Professor Mr. Hiroshi Tsutomi Professor Ms. Mikiko Kakihara Linguistic Adviser Mr. Sean Brian Eratt Secretariat Chief of Secretariat Mr. Yoshinori Miyamoto Deputy Chief of Secretariat Mr. Kunihiko Suzuki Chief of General and Financial Affairs Section Mr. Masuo Tanaka Chief of Training and Hostel Management Affairs Section Mr. Takuma Kai Chief of International Research Affairs Section Mr. Kouichirou Iida <AS OF 31 DECEMBER 2001> 16 APPENDIX 2001 VISITING EXPERTS THE 117TH INTERNATIONAL SENIOR SEMINAR Mr. Daniel P. Murphy Senior Counsel, Strategic Prosecution Policy Section, Criminal Law Branch, Department of Justice, Ontario, Canada Mr. Peter Wilkitzki Director General, Criminal Affairs Bureau, Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Republic of Germany Dr. Gil Galvao Director General, International, European and Cooperative Relations, Ministry of Justice, Portugal Ms. Susan L. Smith Senior Trial Attorney, International Money Laundering Counsel, Asset Forfeiture & Money Laundering Section, Criminal Division, Department of Justice, Washington D.C, United States of America Mr. Jung-sug Chae Senior Prosecutor, Seoul High Prosecutors Office, Seoul, Republic of Korea Mr. Sin Kam-wah Senior Superintendent, Organized Crime and Triad Bureau, Police Headquarters, Hong Kong THE 118TH INTERNATIONAL TRAINING COURSE Ms. Pamela Phillips Coordinator, Community Conferencing, Department of Families, Youth Justice Directorate, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia Dr. Alan W. Leschied Associate Professor, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada Ms.
    [Show full text]
  • ROP Shooting Championship Concludes Photography/Yousuf Bahadr Al-Balushi Security Periodical Issued by the Directorate of Public Relations Contents
    Royal Oman Police Magazine - Issue No . 130- October 2012 ROP Shooting Championship Concludes Photography/Yousuf Bahadr Al-Balushi Security Periodical Issued by the Directorate of Public Relations Contents Editor-in-Chief Col/ Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Jabri Editorial Board Col/ Mohammed bin Khalfan Addegheshi Lt. Col/ Amer bin Sultan Al Tawqi Lt Col/ Jamal bin Habib Al Quraishi Major/ Fahad bin Saif Al Hosni Editing Director Captain/ Hilal bin Mohammed Al Harrasi 4 Editors Lt/ Nabhan bin Sultan Al Harthy Sergeant/ Zakaria bin Salem Al Subhi Civilian Officer/ Thuraia bint Humood Al Aisaria Sub-editors (English Section) 14 Captain/ Ahamed bin Ja’far Al Sarmi Captain/ Abdullah bin Said Al Harthy Civilian Officer/ Bashir Abdel Daim Bashir Layout Producer 16 First Sergeant Major/ Yousuf Bin Bahadar Al Balushi 4 ROP News 14 Omani Values and Hospitality 16 knowledge Garden Contract Signed for Construction of ROP News STF Complex, Sohar His Excellency Lt. General Hassan bin Muhsin Al-Shuraiqe, Inspector General of Police and Customs signed on 28/7/2012 a contract for the construction of Phase I of the Special Task Force Police complex in Sohar, Al-Batina Governorate. The project includes the administrative and residential buildings, training ground, sports facilities and other relevant services. The signature was attended by a number of royal Oman Police officers, and the contractor’s officials. 4 AL-AIN ASSAHIRA Issue No.130 October 2012 Advanced Speed Monitors to be Installed His Excellency Lt. General Hassan bin Mohsin Al-Shuraiqi, Inspector General of Police and Customs signed two agreements on 5/8/2012 for supplying advanced speed monitoring equipment.
    [Show full text]
  • Criminal Background Check Procedures
    Shaping the future of international education New Edition Criminal Background Check Procedures CIS in collaboration with other agencies has formed an International Task Force on Child Protection chaired by CIS Executive Director, Jane Larsson, in order to apply our collective resources, expertise, and partnerships to help international school communities address child protection challenges. Member Organisations of the Task Force: • Council of International Schools • Council of British International Schools • Academy of International School Heads • U.S. Department of State, Office of Overseas Schools • Association for the Advancement of International Education • International Schools Services • ECIS CIS is the leader in requiring police background check documentation for Educator and Leadership Candidates as part of the overall effort to ensure effective screening. Please obtain a current police background check from your current country of employment/residence as well as appropriate documentation from any previous country/countries in which you have worked. It is ultimately a school’s responsibility to ensure that they have appropriate police background documentation for their Educators and CIS is committed to supporting them in this endeavour. It is important to demonstrate a willingness and effort to meet the requirement and obtain all of the paperwork that is realistically possible. This document is the result of extensive research into governmental, law enforcement and embassy websites. We have tried to ensure where possible that the information has been obtained from official channels and to provide links to these sources. CIS requests your help in maintaining an accurate and useful resource; if you find any information to be incorrect or out of date, please contact us at: [email protected].
    [Show full text]
  • 76602 ARABIC 153.Indd
    Two New Border Posts in Al Buraimi Within the strategy to expand The chief guest unveiled the The chief guest received the and enhance the border commemorative plaque, then military salute, unveiled the services, he, Maj Gen Hamad and guests commemorative plaque, and toured the station building, toured the sections of the Royal Oman Police opened which includes administrative station accompanied by Maj recently two border posts, offices, passports counters Gen Hamad and guests. Hamasa and Saara’, in Al and customs yard. Buraimi. The Hamasa border Raya bint Rashid Al Alawiya, post was opened on 30/5/2018 On 15/5/2018 Saara’ border member of Al Buraimi branch in a ceremony presided over by station was opened by His Chamber of Commerce and His Excellency Khalid bin Hilall Excellency Dr Said bin Industry, and Dr Hussa bint Al Busaidi, Undersecretary Khamees Al Ka’bi, President Abdullah Al Badiya, member of the Ministry of Interior, and of the Public Authority for of Oman Human Rights attended by Maj Gen Hamad Consumer Protection in Commission commended the Issue No.153 November 2018 bin Sulaiman Al Hatmi, Assist. a ceremony attended by opening of the station as an Inspector General of Police Maj Gen Hamad Al Hatmi, additional facility to enhance and Customs for Operations, dignitaries, senior police, army travelers traffic across the dignitaries, senior police, army and security officers, sheikhs borders with the United Arab and security officers, sheikhs and local citizens. Emirates. and local citizens. 11 ROP News Al Amirat Police Station in a New Building A new building of Al Amerat police station was opened on 16/4/2018 in a ceremony presided over by His Excellency Hamad bin Said Al Oufi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fish Resources for Fisheries.
    [Show full text]
  • Oman 2012 Human Rights Report
    OMAN 2012 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Sultanate of Oman is ruled by a hereditary monarchy. Sultan Qaboos al-Said has ruled since 1970. The sultan has sole authority to enact laws through royal decree, although ministries draft laws and citizens provide input through the bicameral Majlis Oman (Oman Council). The Majlis is composed of the Majlis al- Dawla (State Council), whose 83 members are appointed by the sultan, and the elected, 84-member Majlis al-Shura (Consultative Council). The last elections took place on December 22 when citizens chose among 1,600 candidates to elect 192 citizens to seats in 11 municipal councils. The 29-member Council of Ministers, selected by the sultan, advises him on government decisions. In 2011 a new law granted the Oman Council powers that expanded its policy review function to include approving, rejecting, and amending legislation and convoking ministers of agencies that provide direct citizen services. Security forces report to civilian authorities. The principal human rights problems were the inability of citizens to change their government, limits on freedom of speech and assembly, and discrimination against women, including political and economic exclusion based on cultural norms. Thirty-two individuals were convicted on charges of libel against the sultan during the year, receiving prison sentences from six to 18 months and fines of 500 to 1,000 Omani rials (approximately $1,300 to $2,600). Another 12 individuals were convicted on charges of illegal assembly (assembly without a permit) while peacefully protesting some of the libel convictions. The protesters each received a prison sentence of one year and a 1,000 rial fine (approximately $2,600).
    [Show full text]
  • The Oman VAT
    The Oman Value Added Tax (VAT) Law Unoffical English translation November 2020 Introduction This document is an English translation of the Oman Value Added Tax (VAT) Law. The English text in this document is not an official translation and is provided for information purposes only. While every care has been taken to ensure accuracy, Deloitte does not guarantee that the translation is free from error or omission. Use of the English text is at the user’s own risk. You cannot rely on this document to cover specific situations; application of the principles set out will depend upon the particular circumstances involved and we recommend that you obtain professional advice before acting or refraining from acting on any of the contents of this publication. ROYAL DECREE NO. 121/2020 FOR THE ISSUANCE OF THE VALUE ADDED TAX LAW We, Haitham bin Tareq, Sultan of Oman, After the perusal of the Basic Law, And the Royal Decree No. 67\2003, in application of the Unified Customs Law of the States of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Following the presentation to the Council of Oman, And in the public interest. The following has been decided Article One The Value added Tax Law attached to this decree shall be enforced. Article Two The Chairman of the Tax Authority shall issue the Executive Regulations of the attached Law within a period not exceeding (6) months from its date of enforcement and shall issue the decisions necessary to implement its provisions. Article Three All that contravenes the attached law or contradicts with its provisions shall be cancelled.
    [Show full text]
  • MECA GUIDE OMAN 1 Middle East Centre Archive St Antony's College
    MECA GUIDE OMAN Middle East Centre Archive St Antony’s College, Oxford Guide to collections relating to Oman Introduction Please note that the following Guide is not comprehensive. It has been compiled from the main Guide to the Middle East Centre Archive and only collections in that catalogue that explicitly mention Oman have been included. Not included in this Guide are several collections that cover the Middle East as a whole and thus may contain material relevant to Oman. For example the Arab Bulletin; British Diplomatic Perspectives on the Middle East; Cairo Conference; Chatham House; A.G.M. Dickson; H.R.P Dickson and the Mance papers. For these papers please consult the main Guide to the Middle East Centre Archive. Where a more detailed description of a collection exists, this is indicated in this Guide by the word ‘Handlist’. Please note that uncatalogued material appears at the end of this Guide ASHLEY, Edward. (1934-2001). GB165-0399 OMAN ARCHIVE: Papers relating to Edward Ashley’s service in the Sultan’s Armed Forces Jebel Regiment Dhofar between 1970-1977, incorporating training materials including a training booklet, ‘Know Your Enemy’ and ‘Jebel Regiment’s Standard Operating Procedures’; materials on anti-guerrilla operations including ‘Commander’s Diary’, ‘Situation Reports’ and ‘Operation Instructions’; including maps of areas which were used during the joint military operations; ‘Oman Humour’, including cartoons; congratulatory letters and Jebel Regiment awards; a staff list of individuals who served in the Sultan’s Armed Forces, including a letter from ex-staff relating to the establishment of the Sultan’s Armed Forces Museum; and photographic material relating to Edward Ashley’s service in Oman, subsequent Sultan’s Armed Forces Association reunions including a trip to Oman in 1984.
    [Show full text]
  • Sohar Freezone Visa Guidelines
    SOHAR FREEZONE VISA GUIDELINES Version 2/2020 SOHAR Freezone Visa Guidelines Introduction: SOHAR Freezone Authority recognises the need to provide Freezone customers with a clear understanding of the visa requirements for working at SOHAR. The One-Stop-Shop department is responsible for guiding and supporting customers through the processes for obtaining visas, as per the applicable laws and regulations. Purpose of this document: To outline the basic general conditions and requirements for obtaining resident visas for companies in SOHAR Freezone. Application processes: • All visa applications are processed either electronically (via www.evisa.rop.gov.om/home) or by physically submitting the documents to the Royal Oman Police Immigration department offices situated in Suhar, Liwa or any other locations across Oman • Applications can be prepared for submission by local clearance offices, located in Suhar or anywhere across the country (you may contact our customer service desk to find the clearance office closest to you) • To obtain a visa, the applicant must have a valid residence ID, which must be activated to use government E-Services General requirements and conditions of government authorities: • The visa applicant must have no criminal record (proof might be requested by relevant authorities in some cases) • A Labour Permit is a preliminary requirement for all types of visas (except family joining visa), which can be obtained from the Ministry of Labour • A valid medical certificate • An attested academic certificate for technical
    [Show full text]